Jakarta – 4 Desember MJ Viljoen from South Africa shot to number one in the standings with a total of 130 strokes, or 14 under par.

“I played well today even though the wind was quite strong. This is my first time playing here. I am not too aggressive. Just as comfortable. The difficulty at Pondok Indah Golf is quite tricky on the tee box,” said MJ.

The golfer, who is participating in a tournament with a total prize of $500,000 for the first time, scored 62 strokes, or 10 under par, on the second day. On the first day, he scored 68 strokes, or 4 under par. He had eight birdies on holes 1, 2, 8, 9, 10, 14, 16, and 18 and an eagle on hole 6.

The second rank is occupied by Nitithorn Thippong from Thailand, with a one stroke difference. The third position is occupied by Richard T. Lee with 132 strokes, or 12 under par. The T4 position is occupied by Sarit Suwannarut, who led the first day with 134 strokes, or 10 under par. He ties up with Chang Wei-lun, Scott Hend, and Doyeob Mun.

Miguel Carballo, a golfer from Argentina who won the 2019 Indonesia Open, also passed the cutoff. Likewise, Miguel Tabuena from the Philippines, who is currently ranked second on the Asian Tour Order of Merit, Meanwhile, Gaganjeet Bhullar, who won the 2022, 2016 and 2013 Indonesia Opens, did not qualify for the cut-off.

The home player, Jonathan Wijono,  got eight birdies to ensure a place in the next round. All of this happened because Jowi, nicknamed Jonathan, carried out his “game plan” very well today.

“Today I really played according to the game plan, yesterday I played more conservatively, so I forgot how to play it. Today, I play it looser. The fairway straight to the green continues. There are lots of birdie opportunities, too. Praise God, I can make eight birdies. I started today in the bottom position, so I had to be aggressive in my playing. Just let it go and play like a practice round. And all of these results can be achieved depending on mindset and mentality. How do we clear our heads so we can focus more on one shot?” explained Jonathan, who scored eight birdies and no bogeys. Collected 137 strokes, or 7 under par. On the first day, he scored 73 strokes, or 1 over par. He is ranked T12 along with eight other players.